On A Silent Night
by PrincessSerenity1976
Summary: It's the first Christmas since the defeat of Chaos. Darien is going to school in America and trying to get home to see Serena for the holidays. But Mother Nature and ill-thought out surprises are conspiring against them. Throw in mad senshi for more fun.


**A/N** Hey guys. Okay this is totally out of the norm for me. I usually don't do one shots, but this idea popped into my head and I decided to run with it. I hope you like it.

This is post stars. It's the first Christmas after Chaos's defeat. Darien has gone to attend college in America like originally planned and he is coming home to visit over his winter break. But things aren't working out like he would have hoped.

I don't own Sailor Moon or any of the characters used in this story. They are all the product of the mind of the wonderful Naoko Takeuchi. I just like to have fun with her creation.

_**ENJOY!**_

On A Silent Night

It was a cold, clear night in the city of Tokyo. The moon shown down brightly, illuminating the bright golden hair of the girl that had just stepped out of the Crown Arcade.

Seventeen-year-old Serena Tsukino sighed deeply as she stared up at the night sky. The doors that she had just come through slid shut with a slight hiss, blocking out the sounds of revelry that were coming from the building.

It was the night of December 23rd, the night before Christmas Eve, and she and her friends had gathered at the arcade for the annual Christmas party that Andrew threw every year.

The whole gang was there. Her friend Mina, who could pass for her twin, had been dating Andrew for a couple of months now, was helping him host this event. Nobody had really been shocked at the announcement that the two were seeing each other; they were only amazed that it had taken them as long as it had to hook up. After all, they had known one another for over three years and had spent most of that time flirting horribly with each other.

Raye, the dark haired, fiery tempered priestess whom Serena fought with constantly, but was as close to as a sister, was there as well. She had shown up with the ever-faithful Chad at her side. Nobody was really sure how their relationship stood. It was no secret that Chad was head over heels in love with Raye, but she always seemed so cool and distant with him. No one dared question her about it for fear of being burnt to a crisp.

The amazoness of their group, Lita, had drug her childhood friend Ken with her. Lita had always claimed that they were only friends, but Serena and the other girls had always wondered if there was something more between them. The looks they shared between each other when they thought that nobody was looking belied their "platonic" state.

Even shy, quiet Amy had made quite an entrance when she had arrived with Greg. The two of them had been involved in a sort of relationship every since Greg had been revealed as one of the rainbow crystal carriers and had been targeted by the Dark Kingdom back in the early days of the sailor senshi. They were both quiet and studious and complimented each other perfectly.

Another sigh left Serena and she wiped a small tear from the corner of her eye that was threatening to fall. Only one was missing from their group, keeping it from being complete. More tears threatened as she thought of her dark haired prince. Just the thought of his piercing deep blue eyes and shiny ebony hair was enough to cause her heart to thump louder.

She hadn't seen Darien since he had left to attend college in America four months before. She hadn't been keen about him leaving again, especially after what had happened the last time he had tried to go school overseas. But this was one of his dreams and she didn't want to spoil it for him. So she sent him off with a smile, and tried to wait as patiently as possible for his phone calls and e-mails.

At least this time she knew that he had arrived at his destination safely. Even though Chaos had been defeated and all had been quiet for three months before his departure, she had been anxious about letting him go again. But this time had proven to be different. Now there were daily e-mails exchanged between them, and thanks to the new cell phones they had gotten, he called her whenever he had a few minutes free to talk.

The sound of a loud Christmas song penetrated the thick glass of the arcade doors, bringing her spirits down even further. She had hoped that Darien would be here with her tonight. He had planned to come home while he was on winter break from his classes and Serena had been excited for weeks, planning things to do with him. But the phone call she had received the night before had shattered that hope.

FLASHBACK

Serena had just come out of her bathroom from taking a shower. The night was cold and she shivered despite being bundled up in her fuzzy pink flannel pajamas. Wanting to get warmed up, she raced across the room and jumped in her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. Reaching over, she grabbed her TV remote and her cell phone.

She flipped through the stations until she found a holiday movie that was one of her favorites and settled in to watch it. She checked her phone to make sure she hadn't missed any calls. Darien's flight was leaving some time tonight, and he had promised to call her before he left and let her know he was leaving.

Serena giggled softly and hugged herself tightly. Tomorrow he would be home. Okay, so it wasn't for good, only for ten days, but it was ten days that she was planning on enjoying to the fullest. The summer that they'd had together after the battle with Galaxia before he had left hadn't been enough. She was suffering from withdrawal from not seeing her prince, and she needed her fix.

The phone she was clutching in her hand began ringing and she looked at the display screen with a grin as Darien's name popped up on it. This was the call she had been waiting for. She flipped the phone open with trembling fingers.

"Hello" she said, excitement making her sound breathless.

There was silence for a moment, and then, "Hey, Sere."

"Darien" she squealed. "I was waiting for your call. Are you at the airport? How soon does your flight leave? What time will you be here? I want to know so I can come meet you at the airport."

Another moment of silence, and then a deep sigh. "I don't know when I'll be there, or if I'll be able to come at all, Serena."

Serena froze for a moment. "What are you talking about, silly? Of course you're coming home. We've been planning this for weeks."

"I know, I know." he groaned. "But the weather is really bad here. It's been snowing like crazy here for a few days. Pretty much all of the flights are delayed and now they're even starting to cancel some. I don't know if, or when, I'll be able to get on a plane. If this keeps up for too long, I'll have to cancel the trip completely."

"Oh" was all Serena could whisper

"I know you're disappointed. I am, too." Darien said sadly. "I was really looking forward to holding you again and spending Christmas with you. I promise, if they get things cleared up here soon, I'll be home as quick as I can."

Serena's throat choked up and tears threatened her eyes at his words. But she didn't want to upset him with her disappointment so she forced her voice to be bright. "Well, we can't control Mother Nature now, can we? Maybe she'll give us a break soon and the planes will start running again."

"I sure hope so. I miss you, Sere." he said brokenly.

"I know." she replied, trying to hide the tears in her voice. "I miss you too, Darien."

END FLASHBACK

That had been the last that Serena had heard from him. She had been tempted to call him several times today to get a status report, but decided that she wasn't going to bug him about something that was beyond their control. As the day wore on without word from him, she had begun to lose hope.

She had been tempted to skip Andrew's party, but her friends had called her and threatened to come over and drag her bodily from the house if she didn't come. If her friends were ordinary girls, this wouldn't have bothered her. But since they were the sailor senshi she decided not to press her luck. Although she was Sailor Moon, their leader, and their princess, she figured it was safer to just go to the party.

In the beginning it had been okay. The joking and the laughing had helped distract her a little from her morose thoughts. But as the night went on and the couples drew closer together and then began dancing, she had begun to feel sad and left out. Seeking to escape the lovey dovey atmosphere, she escaped outside.

She had stood there for several minutes when she heard the doors behind her slide open. She turned her head to see Raye and Mina walking out of the arcade.

"Oh, there you are, Serena." Raye exclaimed.

"Yeah girl. We were wondering where you had gotten off to. You're missing a great party." Mina added.

Serena tried to hide a sniffle with a giggle. "Sorry about that. It was feeling a little stuffy in there, so I thought I'd catch a breath of fresh air."

Her two friends weren't fooled for a second. One look at her eyes, shining with unshed tears, told the whole story. They both reached out to hug her.

"Oh, sweetie. I know this is hard for you." Mina sympathized. "I can only imagine what you are feeling right now."

Raye tried to be her usual brusque self. "Okay, you're missing the big lug. But you know he's trying his best to get back to you, Meatball Head."

Serena lost the battle with her tears and a few escaped to trickle down her cheeks. She embraced her friends as a small sob tore from her throat. "Why does it always seem like things are plotting against us? All I want is to spend a little time with him before I have to send him away again. Is that too much to ask?"

Raye and Mina stared at each other over the bowed head of their princess. There was a despair in her voice that they had rarely ever heard. Only Darien could elicit such emotions from the normally bubbly blonde.

The doors slid open again and Lita and Amy walked out. They took one look at their huddled group of friends with the emotional girl in the center and joined them, wrapping their arms around them in a group hug as they listened to Serena pour out her grief.

One by one, the guys came to the door to see where the girls had gone, only to be waved away by their dates. Not wanting to be pulled into something that was obviously a woman thing, they quickly turned and left. The only one that hung around for a moment was Andrew. He was Darien's best friend and knew from the phone call that he had received from him the night before that Darien was just as upset about the travel delay as Serena was. He said a few comforting words to Serena and actually got her to crack a small smile.

As he turned and went back inside, Serena wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at her four best friends. "I'm sorry about that, you guys. I guess I was just having a moment."

A round of giggles came from the other four as they carefully watched their princess. An outburst like this used to be a common occurrence with Serena, but she had matured some over the years, especially in the past year, so it wasn't often that she gave into emotional fits anymore.

"Well, if we're done curing this crisis, I say we go back inside. It's cold out here." Mina said with a shiver.

The others agreed, but Serena shook her head. "I think I'm going to go home. I feel like I'm just dragging everyone down with me, and you girls deserve to enjoy the party without worrying about me."

That brought an immediate chorus of protests. They were the sailor senshi, sworn to protect the moon princess from any danger, including her own emotions and depression.

"Oh no, Serena, please stay." Amy pleaded.

"Yeah, it wouldn't be a party without you girl." Lita added.

Mina nodded her head enthusiastically. "No way are you leaving yet. It's still early."

For once Raye looked at her with sad eyes instead of angry ones. "I thought you were staying with us at the temple tonight."

Serena shook her head. "I'm sorry. I just want to be alone right now. You go back inside and have fun. I'm just tired and I'm going to go home and go to bed."

They heard the seriousness in her voice and decided it wasn't in her best interest to force her to stay when she was obviously so miserable. One by one they nodded in acceptance.

"At least let us walk you home." Mina offered.

Amy agreed. "It's not safe for you to be out alone after dark."

Lita pounded her fists together. "Yeah, I'll stomp the shit out of anyone that comes near you."

Serena gave them a sad smile. "Thanks guys, but I'll be fine by myself. I am Sailor Moon after all. I can protect myself. And I'll call you if anything happens."

"But…" Mina, Lita, and Amy began protesting.

Raye cut them off. "Let her go. But you promise to call us tomorrow morning. We still have plans for last minute shopping, and you're not getting out of that so easily."

Serena gave Raye a grateful look. "I will. Thanks, you guys. I'll see you later."

They watched her with sad eyes as she turned and began hurrying down the street, pulling the collar of her jacket up against the cold wind. Once she disappeared around the corner they all sighed and went back inside the arcade to try to enjoy the rest of the festivities.

None of them noticed the slender, silver cell phone that had been left lying on the stool at the end of the long counter or the way that lights were flashing on the screen. The music was loud enough that they also couldn't hear the ringing of the small device. If only one of them had noticed, they would have seen a picture of a red rose and the name Darien Shields appear on the display.

* * *

Darien cursed as he dialed Serena's number yet again, only to get her voice mail. He had hung out in the airport in Boston for hours and had finally gotten a lucky break when the weather cleared long enough for the airline personnel to clear the runways and get the planes moving again.

Due to the time difference between Tokyo and Boston, he had decided to not call Serena before boarding his flight. He figured she would be asleep anyway, and it would be priceless to see the look on her face when he surprised her by showing up unexpectedly.

By the time his plane landed in Tokyo, several hours later than his original flight should have, he had a plan in place. He smirked at the joke he was going to play on his unsuspecting girlfriend. He had pulled out his cell phone to call her. He was going to tell her that he was just now getting on a plane and would be home some time tomorrow. He knew that tonight was the night of Andrew's Christmas party and she would be there. So he could imagine her surprise when he would walk in unexpectedly.

He was the one surprised, however, when after several rings he heard, _'Hi, this is Serena. I must be busy and unable to get to the phone right now. Just leave me a message and I'll get back to you as quick as I can. Later!'_

Darien pulled the phone away from his ear and stared at it in shock. Serena almost always answered her phone. It was very rare for her to let any calls go to voicemail. Maybe she was busy at the party and didn't hear it ring.

He tried several more times to call her as he retrieved his luggage and fought the crowd to get outside where he could hail a taxi. After giving the driver the address for the Crown Arcade, he repeatedly tried to call her again and again with the same results.

By the time the cab pulled up to the arcade, he was on pins and needles. A little bit of doubt was beginning to work its way into his system. What if she was mad and thought that he had just been brushing her off? Was that why she wasn't answering her phone? Did she not want to speak to him?

Darien mentally shook his head as he paid the driver and grabbed his bags. No way. Not his Serena. She was the most giving and loving person in the world. She had sacrificed herself countless times to save this planet, not to mention she had crawled to the darkest ends of the earth on more than one occasion to save his hide. She wouldn't purposefully ignore him. She didn't have it in her.

He stood on the sidewalk staring at the building that housed so many memories for him over the past few years. This place seemed to be a focal point for his and Serena's relationship. Hardly a day had gone by that they didn't stop in at least once.

In the early days it had been the site of the fights that had happened between them. Serena had been fourteen and he seventeen when they had first met. At first he had thought her annoying and had picked on her terribly. Over time something had changed between them. He woke up one day and realized that he was no longer teasing her to be mean, but because it was the only way he knew how to talk to her. He also thought she looked adorable when she was angry, all pink cheeks and flashing blue eyes.

Thinking of that angelic face and the way that those crystalline eyes would widen in astonishment when she saw him had him shaking himself out of his daydreams and hurrying to the door, anxious to see his angel.

The doors slid open and a rush of heat, along with the loud blare of music hit him. He grinned. No wonder Serena wasn't answering her phone. Who could hear with all of this noise?

The arcade was fairly crowded. Andrew's annual party was well known and always drew in a crowd. He left his bags at the door and began making his way through the mass of people, keeping his eyes open for a certain golden blonde head.

A flash of blonde near the counter had him turning to see if it was who he was looking for. No, it wasn't her, but she would be able to tell him where she was.

Mina, Raye, Lita, and Amy were sitting on stools at the counter. Andrew was in his usual spot behind it while Chad, Ken, and Greg stood nearby. They all seemed to be unnaturally quiet in such a festive atmosphere.

As Darien pushed his way toward them, the movement caught Andrew's attention. His head popped up and his eyes widened. "Holy shit, dude! Where the hell did you come from?"

The four girls spun around at Andrew's outburst and they froze with identical looks of disbelief on their faces.

Darien chuckled. He had been expecting to surprise everyone, but this was better than he thought it would be. "Uh. Last time I checked I came here from Boston."

Andrew just shook his head at his friend's dry attempt at humor. The shock wore off of the four girls, and suddenly Darien found himself face to face with a furious group of sailor senshi.

Before he could say anything, Raye and Lita had each grabbed him by an arm and had hauled him into the backroom, away from the party. Mina and Amy followed with angry looks on their faces. Once they were all in the room, they released Darien and stood in a line, side by side, to block the door.

"What the hell is wrong with all of you?" Darien yelled. "I come home to visit and this is the kind of welcome I get?"

"Shut the hell up, Darien." Raye snapped, flames burning in her violet eyes.

"What…?" he asked, bewildered.

Mina's eyes were bright. "How could you do this to her?"

Lita cracked her knuckles. "Can I kick his ass? Please say I can."

"Wait just a damn minute!" Darien bellowed. "What are you talking about? I haven't done anything. I haven't even been here. So why do you four have your panties in such a bunch?"

Amy pushed her way between them, trying to keep the peace. She was angry as well and shot her three friends a quieting look before glaring at the seemingly clueless earth prince.

That shocked Darien. Amy was always the calm, sensible one. It took a lot for her to become angry. But one look at her flashing blue eyes told him that the senshi of ice was pissed.

Even through her rage, Amy was able to keep her voice calm. "What my companions are trying to say is we can't figure out why you would just show up here and not call Serena to let her know that you finally caught a flight. She has been an emotional wreck every since your phone call last night. How could not take her feelings into consideration?"

Darien paused. He had thought that surprising Serena would be fun, but now he could see that perhaps he should have called her before. "It was the middle of the night here when my flight finally left. I didn't want to call and wake her up, so I just thought I would surprise her by showing up."

Groans were heard from all of the girls as they stared at him in disbelief.

Lita shook her head. "I swear, men are so freakin thick."

Mina nodded. "Tell me about it. That's why they need us women. They would be lost without us."

Anger still burned in Raye's eyes. "Damn it, Darien! You are such an asshole! Did you honestly think that Serena would just slip off to sleep after getting such disappointing news? She called me and cried for hours last night. Then she sat up the whole night waiting to hear from you."

Darien was stunned. "She what? But why? I told her that I would try to get here if possible."

Mina laid a hand on his shoulder. "She knows that, Darien. But you have to look at it from her point of view. She went through hell for nine months thinking that you were off enjoying your fabulous college life and she never heard from you. Of course now we know why, but it was hard on her. She tried to hide it from us, but we could tell something wasn't right."

The fight went out of Lita and she slouched against the wall. "I had hoped to never see that look in her eyes again. But tonight it was back. It was like she was just a shell. She had none of that spark in her that she usually has."

Darien had heard enough. He leveled serious eyes on the girls. "Where is she? Is she here?"

Amy shook her head. "No. She got upset and left an hour ago. She said she was tired and going home."

Darien strode to the door and had his hand on the knob when a thought occurred to him. "I tried to call her several times when my plane landed. Why didn't she answer her phone?"

The girls looked around at each other and then at him. They all shrugged, showing that they were just as clueless as he was about that. Raye pulled out her cell phone as they all walked back into the arcade and dialed Serena's number quickly.

They had reached the counter just as there was a lull in the noise. Just then, a familiar ring tone reached their ears. Looking around, they spied the slender, silver cell phone lying on the stool at the very end of the counter.

Raye clicked her phone shut as she picked up Serena's. "Well, I guess that answers that question."

Darien took the phone from her. "You said she was going home, right?"

Raye nodded. "That's what she said."

Darien turned quickly and headed for the door, calling a quick 'catch up with you later' to Andrew. He hit the sidewalk and began running quickly toward Serena's house. Luckily she lived close by and he was there in a matter of minutes.

All of the windows of the Tsukino's house were dark. Clearly they were all in bed. He debated his next course of action carefully before reaching inside his jacket pocket and pulling out a perfectly shaped, blood red rose. Looking around to make sure no one could see, he let the power that he hadn't used in so long wash over him. A few seconds later. Tuxedo Mask stood in his place.

He leapt quickly up into the branches of a large tree. Jumping quietly from limb to limb, he soon reached a second floor bedroom window. The window was left slightly cracked open as usual to allow Serena's feline guardian, Luna, the freedom to come and go as she pleased.

He pushed the glass up and slipped into the room on silent feet. It was just as remembered it, all pink and white. Totally Serena.

It was dark, making it a little difficult to see, but he knew the room well and made his way toward the bed that was covered in a blanket that was decorated with moons and stars. A bed that he was also shocked to find empty.

Where the hell was she?

* * *

When Serena left the arcade she just walked, not paying attention to where her feet were leading her. She was in a daze and was surprised when she looked up several minutes later to find herself in front of Darien's apartment building instead of her own house.

Not really wanting to go home to her lonely bedroom and what was sure to be another long, restless night, she made a quick decision to stay at the apartment. She needed to feel close to Darien, and being in his apartment surrounded by his belongings always made her feel better.

She had a key to the apartment that Darien had given to her a long time ago. She had been coming by every couple of days to check on things for him, and of course to water his precious rose bushes. She and the girls had even gotten into the habit of using the apartment for their study sessions. There had also been a few sleepover parties held there, but Darien didn't have to know about all of that.

She was about to walk through the glass doors to the building when she saw the doorman. Damn. Paul was on duty tonight. Just her luck. Paul was a sweet, grandfatherly type man who always had a kind word for her when she arrived. Whenever he was on duty he would ask how she was doing and inquire about Darien as well. They had become good friends over the years since Serena had been coming here.

Feeling bad about brushing the old man off, but really not in the mood to put on a charade tonight, Serena decided to take a direct route to her destination. She ducked around the side of the building where she would have a moment of privacy. Pulling out a heart shaped locket with wings she whispered, "Moon Eternal Power". A few seconds and some flashing lights and feathers later, she had transformed into Sailor Moon.

She jumped up onto the fire escape. Then using the balcony railings, she worked her way up the side of the building until she reached the one she wanted. Landing on Darien's balcony, she slid open the sliding glass door. It was never kept locked. Who could break into the apartment twenty stories up through the balcony anyway?

Once inside she dropped the transformation. With a deep sigh she went and turned on the lights of the Christmas tree that she had put up in the apartment in anticipation of Darien's arrival. Looking at the brightly twinkling lights, she wondered if they would get a chance to enjoy them together this year.

Trying to shake off the melancholy feelings she was having, she walked into the kitchen to make herself some hot chocolate. Afterwards she flipped the stereo on and tuned it in to some softly playing Christmas music and settled down on the floor by the tree with her mug, a pillow, and a blanket.

She couldn't help but wonder where Darien was now. Was he at the airport still waiting for a flight, or was the situation so hopeless that he had gone back to his dorm room? Would he ever make it home? It would be another five months before he finished his classes and came back if he couldn't make this trip.

She had thought that she was all cried out, but suddenly there were tears in her eyes again. She didn't bother trying to fight against them this time. She sat her cup on the nearby coffee table before lying down on the floor with the blanket wrapped tightly around her and sobbing loudly into the pillow.

Exhaustion finally caught up with her and she fell asleep lying there by the tree. The multicolored lights shining on the tear tracks on her face.

* * *

Tuxedo Mask jumped from the second story window. He had been surprised to not find Serena in her bed like he had thought he would. He hated to think that she was out alone and upset wandering around at this time of night. He was really feeling like the world's biggest jackass right now and was desperate to find his wayward girlfriend so that he could try to make things right.

Closing his eyes, he felt out through the bond that he and Serena shared. Being soul mates and being able to sense where she was came in handy sometimes. It meant that he didn't have to spend hours combing the city for her and would be able to find her in a matter of minutes.

He grinned as he sensed her energy. That warm, soft power would lead him straight to her. "Ah ha! Gotcha!"

He decided to go the fast way and took to the rooftops, leaping from one building to the next as he followed the trail that led him to his own apartment building. He shook his head and chuckled. He should have known that she would be here.

He ducked around the side of the building and looked up at his balcony where he could see soft light shining through the glass doors. He briefly considered jumping up there to surprise her, but considering how his last surprise had backfired, he figured it was probably best to go in the normal way.

His transformation faded away and he walked around to the entrance. Paul, the doorman, grinned widely as he saw him.

"Welcome back, Mr. Shields. It's nice to see you again." the older man greeted him.

Darien returned his grin. "Good to see you too, Paul. It's great to be home."

Paul looked around expectantly, as if he were looking for someone or something. "I'm surprised to see you alone. I figured the lovely Miss Tsukino would be with you. She has been running around here all week buzzing about you coming home to visit. I don't think I've ever seen anyone more excited."

Darien paused. "You mean you haven't seen her today?"

Paul shook his head. "Not since my shift started. I saw her yesterday afternoon when she came in with some groceries, but that was the last time. She mentioned something about a party you two were going to go to tonight."

"Uh, yeah" Darien stammered. "My flight was delayed and threw everything off. I've got some things to take care of. I'll talk to you later, Paul."

Paul chuckled at the young man's haste to get to the elevator. He knew how to read the signs, and Darien was showing all the symptoms of being head over heels and madly in love.

"Don't make her wait too long." he called out as Darien stepped onto the elevator. "If there's one thing I know after forty years of marriage is that women have little patience when it comes to love."

Darien grinned and waved as the doors slid shut. Little did Paul know that he was on his way at that moment to put an end to Serena's waiting. His senses were tingling all over, so he knew she was there. The little minx must have used his earlier idea and entered by the balcony door.

The elevator dinged as it reached the top floor. He squeezed through the doors before they were even open all the way and ran down the hall to his door, keys already in hand. He slid the key into the lock and turned it gently. It unlocked with a slight click. He turned the knob slowly and eased the door open.

He slipped inside and closed the door behind him. He could see a soft light coming from his living room as he stood in the hall. The faint sound of Christmas music reached his ears as well.

"Serena" he called out.

He waited for a few seconds, expecting to be hit any moment by the blonde bombshell as she came flying at him, but it remained still and quiet. Growing concerned, he made his way down the hall to the living room.

He smiled at the decorations around the room. He had never really celebrated the holidays before he met Serena. Growing up as an orphan with no family kind of has that effect. But once she had crashed into his life, by way of a crumpled test paper hitting his head, he had slowly been drawn into her world. Since then, he had allowed her to decorate his apartment every year. She did it to remind him that he now had a family and wasn't alone anymore.

His eyes lit up as he spotted the object of his thoughts lying by the Christmas tree, wrapped in a blanket and a mug of hot chocolate on the table. They had started a tradition the first Christmas that they were together. They had spent many nights sitting by the tree, wrapped in each other's arms and sipping cocoa. Sometimes they talked, sometimes they shared a comfortable silence, but the most prominent memories were of the kisses and love they had shared there.

He crossed the room on silent feet and sank down next to the golden angel. She did indeed look angelic as she slept. Lying on her side, she had one hand tucked up under her chin while her long, silky blonde hair spread out around her. Her lips were slightly parted, glistening and pink, begging to be kissed.

Darien grinned. He would definitely be happy to oblige. He leaned down slowly, intending to wake the sleeping beauty with a kiss from her own prince charming when something struck him. Her nose was red and there tear trails that were drying on her cheeks.

If Darien had been capable of kicking his own ass he would have. Maybe he should go back to the arcade and let Lita have her wish. He deserved it. He had thought that it would be nice to surprise Serena with his unexpected arrival, but instead he had caused her pain. Pain that he could have avoided with a simple phone call.

Deep down, he knew he should have known better. The whole Galaxia incident had passed in the blink of an eye for him. One minute he had been fighting the possessed senshi on the wing of an airplane, the next he found himself back with Serena and the rest of the sailor senshi nine months later. It was like the whole thing had never even happened in his mind.

But Serena had suffered. She had never really talked about it with him, but the others had filled him in on all of those missing months. They had all known something was wrong with her, but when they asked she had always assured them that she was fine. She had lied to them all for months. She hadn't told them that she had lost contact with him. It wasn't until she had finally broken down not too long before the final battle that the truth had come out.

Even though she had begun to lose hope, she had tried to keep on living. She had even tried dating someone else for a while. But Seiya had only been a good friend to her and hadn't been able to cure her shattered heart. In the end, she had fought off Chaos and had brought him back to her. He had thought that their love was as strong as it had ever been, but obviously she still harbored some fears from those months of being alone.

No more, he decided. He would start at this moment to try to banish her fears and insecurities. He never wanted her to have to go through the pain or doubt ever again. Even if he had to leave for a while, he wanted her to know that he would always come back to her.

He was still leaning over her, his lips just inches from hers. He slowly closed the gap to brush his lips lightly over hers. A small sigh escaped her, but her eyes remained closed. Chuckling to himself, he kissed her again. This time he fixed his lips firmly to hers and reached out with his tongue to lick at her bottom lip.

He felt her stir in his arms as she moaned softly. Her mouth opened wider and he took advantage of it, slipping his tongue in to rub sensuously against hers. He felt her arms rise up to encircle his neck. Her fingers toyed with the hair at his nape.

He indulged in the kiss for another minute before pulling back to look down at her face. Her eyes fluttered open to reveal twin orbs of hazy, half conscious blue. She smiled at him sleepily.

"Mmm…I like this dream. I don't ever want to wake up." she whispered.

Darien chuckled. "I hate to disappoint you Angel, but you are awake."

She blinked several times. "Hmm…what?"

"This isn't a dream." he said huskily. "This is real. I'm really here."

She looked around for a second at the lit Christmas tree and the other decorations that were scattered around the room before turning her gaze back to him. Her eyes widened at the realization that she wasn't asleep. She was wide-awake, and Darien was here.

She sat up with a squeal and threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly as she peppered his face with little kisses.

"Oh my god! I can't believe you're finally here!" she cried. "I didn't think you would ever get home."

He held her close and buried his face in her hair. "I didn't think I was going to either there for a while."

Suddenly she pulled back and smacked him on the arm. "You jerk! Why didn't you call and tell me that you were on the way? Do you have any idea what I've been going through? I thought this Christmas was going to be ruined just like last year…Wait a minute…Are you laughing at me?"

Darien couldn't help himself. She always looked so cute when she lost her temper that it made him laugh. He pulled her back to him and enveloped her in a giant bear hug. "Oh Serena, I can't tell you how much I've missed you."

She relaxed against him with her head on his shoulder. "Don't think this makes everything all better, buster. You're still on my shit list."

Darien choked back his chuckles. "I know. I'm sorry about everything. I just thought I could surprise you. I didn't stop to think how you would take things. In my defense, I did try to call you when my plane landed, but somebody didn't answer her phone."

Serena jumped up and began patting down her pockets. Then she ran over to where she had her jacket laying over a chair and searched it.

"Oh no!" she wailed. "I can't believe I lost my phone. I had it earlier at the arcade. I must have set it down or something. I've got to find…"

Her words faded away as Darien dangled the missing cell phone in front of her face. "Is this what you're looking for?"

She quickly grabbed it from him. "Oh thank goodness. This is thing is my lifeline. I couldn't live without it. It's the only way I can hear your voice when you're gone."

Darien studied her face intently, reading the emotions that were flitting across her features. He stiffened his resolve and made a decision. "Serena, if you don't want me to go back to school, I won't. I'll stay here with you."

Serena stared at him in shock. "What are you saying, Darien?"

Darien pulled her back into his arms. "I'm saying that I don't like the thought of you hurting. I hate being apart from you, too. So if you want me to stay here, I will."

Serena stood on her tiptoes and brushed a light kiss over his lips before pulling back and smiling at him. "Thank you, but I think I can survive a few more months. You go back and finish what you have to do. I'll be here waiting for you when you get back."

He protested. "But I can just transfer back here. It's not that big of a deal. The university here has just as good of a medical program as Harvard. It's not like I'll really be using the knowledge a whole lot in the future. I mean, once Crystal Tokyo starts I'll be too busy…"

"Endymion, my love." Serena broke into his rant.

He stopped mid sentence. He always felt like he was melting when she spoke to him like that. "Yes, my darling Serenity?"

"Shut up" she ordered as she pulled his head down to hers and claimed his lips in a searing kiss that left them both weak in the knees.

Her voice was breathless as she spoke again. "You know that it has never mattered to me who you were in the past, or who you will be in the future. What's important to me is who you are right now. This year at Harvard is one of your dreams, and I want you to have it. So what if you end up being the king of Crystal Tokyo instead of a doctor? We have to live our lives for now and not for what the future holds. If it were me wanting to pursue a dream, wouldn't you encourage me to go for it?"

He nodded. "Of course I would, but…"

She laid a couple of fingers against his lips, silencing him again. "No buts. It's sweet that you would be willing to give up this opportunity for me, but I won't let you. You're going back and finishing and that's final. We can concentrate on us when you get back, okay?"

He looked at her in wonder. "When did you get to be so smart?"

She gave him a saucy grin. "I had to grow up sometime. I never figured Neo Queen Serenity for being a flake from the way Rini always talked about her. But don't worry, underneath my new maturity I'm still your Meatball Head."

His eyes darkened as he stared at her. "You most definitely are. Now why don't you show me some more of that new maturity?"

She caught his meaning in an instant and went back up on tiptoes as he lowered his head to meet her halfway. In no time, articles of clothing were falling to the floor. His hideous green jacket fell next to her blouse. Her skirt landed on top of his black shirt.

Serena was left in nothing but her bra and panties. Darien was still in his slacks, but was bare chested. She reached out and trailed her fingers down the smooth expanse of skin. She giggled as he shuddered under her touch. She reached his belt and used it to pull him against her as she leaned against the wall.

Darien growled and attacked her neck, biting her softly before using his lips and tongue to sooth the ravaged area. He moaned deeply as her busy little fingers unfastened his belt and undid the button and zipper of his slacks. They fell to the floor as her hand slipped into the waistband of his boxers.

Dizzy with desire, he reached behind her and made short work of her bra and flung it to the side, leaving her wide open to his lust filled gaze. They were both flushed and panting by this point.

"You are so beautiful." he breathed. This was still fairly new territory for them. Even though they had been together for over three years, they had only consummated the relationship the past summer before he left. He was still in awe every time he saw her body.

Serena was thinking the same thing about him as she drank in the sight of him in all of his lean, muscular glory. She wondered briefly if he worked out now that he didn't moonlight as a masked super hero anymore.

They stared deeply into each other's eyes, lost in the moment. A moment that was shattered as Serena's cell phone began ringing shrilly. They both jumped at the sound.

Serena began digging around in the piles of clothes letting out a stream of curses that shocked Darien. He had never heard her curse like that before and didn't even know she knew how to. But it really wasn't surprising considering Raye and Lita could put drunken sailors to shame when they got mad. Evidently they were rubbing off on her. Darien didn't know why, but he found the sight of his supposedly innocent girlfriend scrambling around on the floor in nothing but that flimsy excuse for panties while cussing a blue streak extremely hot.

Serena found the offending object that had ruined her perfect moment and glared at the screen for a moment before snapping it open. "This better be important Mars. If it's not I swear I will throw your sorry ass into your own fire and toast marshmallows while you burn."

Darien grinned. Serena was wound up tighter than a bowstring and was ready to snap any second, and he wanted her to snap. He went behind her as she was listening to whatever Raye was saying. He swept her hair to the side and began nibbling on her neck. He felt a shiver run through her body.

Serena felt her breath catch, but tried to pay attention to Raye. Her voice turned husky as she stammered out answers to her friend. "Uh…yeah…obviously he found me…no…I don't think we'll be coming back to the party…yeah…mall…tomorrow…noon."

She gasped as one of Darien's hands found its way around her and covered her breast, squeezing gently. "Um…um…I gotta go Raye." She let out a moan as she disconnected the call and threw the phone aside.

"Now where were we?" Darien whispered hotly in her ear.

She turned and wound her arms around him, dragging him to the floor with her by the Christmas tree. "Right about here."

And then she kissed him.

* * *

Raye stared in shock at her phone. Had she just heard a moan before the connection was cut? She felt her cheeks warm up as a slight blush stole across her face. She had thought when she called Serena that she would find her in the middle of chewing Darien out for being an insensitive ass. Obviously she had interrupted her princess in the middle of something else entirely.

"So, is she okay." Amy asked in concern.

Raye swallowed hard. "Um, you could say that."

"Ahhh" Mina drawled. "I see. They made up and Raye just had the opportunity to disturb them in the middle of a very private moment."

"Shut up, Mina!" Raye growled. "How was I supposed to know that they were doing…_that_?"

Mina grinned and tapped herself on the chest. "You should have asked me. Goddess of Love, remember?"

Lita let out a low whistle. "Damn. He doesn't waste any time, does he? Darien's the man."

"Please you guys, can we talk about something else?" Amy pleaded.

Raye agreed quickly. "Yes. I need to get my mind on something else. I've got mental images in my head I definitely need to get rid of."

"Hmm" Lita mused. "So our princess and prince decided to give each other an early Christmas gift. I hope they're using protection. If they goof up and have Rini too early, Pluto will break badass all over them."

"Lita!" Raye and Amy cried out desperately.

Mina giggled. "Darien may think he's getting his Christmas gift now, but the real one's still coming."

The other three looked at her in confusion. They had all been with Serena when she bought Darien's gift and didn't see why Mina found it so humorous.

Mina looked at them in surprise. "Oh, you haven't heard about the rest of her plan? Let me fill you in."

A few minutes later the rest of the people in the arcade turned to stare at the four girls that had just burst out into insane laughter for no apparent reason. They were all slouched over, clutching their sides with tears in their eyes. Through the laughter they all voiced the same three opinions.

#1 – Serena's plan was perfect.

#2 – This was something that had needed to be done for a long time.

#3 – Darien just might kill her if he ever found out.

* * *

December 26th

"Serena, have you seen my jacket?" Darien called in the direction of the bathroom.

"It's on the chair by the door, sweetie." came her answer from the other side of the door.

He looked over and saw the new black leather jacket that Serena had given to him for Christmas. But that wasn't the one he was looking for.

"Not that one." he said loudly. "I'm looking for my green one."

The door to the bathroom opened and Serena walked out wrapped in a towel, fresh from a shower. "I don't know where it is. I don't wear the ugly thing. It's probably wherever you put it the last time you wore it."

He thought about that hard. He hadn't worn it since Christmas Eve two days ago. Serena had given him the new one Christmas morning and he had worn it yesterday. That meant that his old one was around here somewhere.

"I've looked everywhere for it and can't find it anywhere. It's like it vanished or something." he mumbled.

Serena hid a grin as she pulled a sweater over her head. Darien would never hear it from her lips, but the horrid green jacket that she had despised since the moment she had met him had finally met its end.

Last night, while Darien had been visiting with Andrew, Serena had smuggled the offending article out of the apartment and had raced to Raye's temple. There with her four best friends, they had bid goodbye to the jacket that had been such an eyesore for so long as they watched it turn to ashes in the temple's fire.

"Damn" Darien groaned as he pulled on the new leather jacket. "That's the only one I brought with me. I left the others back in my dorm."

Serena froze. "Others?"

Darien nodded. "Yeah I have three of them, but I only brought the one with me. I just can't figure out where it could have gone. Are you sure you don't know anything about it?"

Serena kept her face neutral. "I don't have a clue, honey."

Darien walked out of the bedroom still grumbling to himself while Serena sat on the edge of the bed and fumed. She had thought that she was finally rid of the sight of him in that god-awful jacket, now she had two more that she needed to dispose of. Oh well, she had five months to come up with a plan before he came back with the other two. Or maybe she would get lucky and the airline would lose his luggage.

'_It just isn't fair!'_ she raged inwardly. All she was asking for was a few years of seeing him in clothing that actually suited him instead of something that looked like Linda Blair had decided to throw up on. That wasn't too much to ask, was it?

She shivered when she thought of what she had seen of her future the time she visited Crystal Tokyo. King Endymion had definitely still been a handsome man, but that lavender tuxedo was a serious fashion violation in her book.

She sighed. It seemed that her prince was just destined to be a hot, sexy, yet poorly dressed man. Oh well, she loved him anyway.

She had just finished fixing her hair into her trademark odango style when he called out to her. "Serena, are you almost ready?"

"Coming" she replied, hurrying from the bedroom and into his waiting arms. She still had eight days left with her love before he went back to college, and she wasn't going to waste a moment of it.

**A/N **I hope everyone enjoyed this. It was just a random story that popped into my head and I couldn't get rid of it. I know I have other stories that I should be working on instead, but I felt the need to write this one. Happy Holidays everybody. And please remember to leave me a review and tell me what you think. Catch ya later!

Sere-chan


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